Fall River Mayor Correia recalled, and then reelected

The Herald-News (Fall River)

Tuesday

Mar 12, 2019 at 7:49 AMMar 12, 2019 at 11:20 PM

FALL RIVER — Voters recalled and reelected Mayor Jasiel Correia II on Tuesday, according to unofficial election results, meaning the federally indicted mayor will remain in office as he pivots to winning over voters who wanted him out.

According to unofficial election results, a 61 percent majority of voters said yes to recalling Correia (7,829 to 4,911). The recall election was called after federal prosecutors in October indicted Correia on nine counts of wire fraud and four counts of tax fraud.

But on the second half of the ballot, where voters were asked to select one of five candidates — including Correia — whom they wanted as mayor, Correia was the top vote-getter, with 4,808 votes.

Correia greeted a crowd of cheering supporters at Barrett’s Waterfront. With family members behind him, Correia said he found himself in the rare situation where he is speechless.

Then, he thanked the crowd for supporting him through the recall, and promised to work to improve public safety, education and economic development.

“Praise God,” Correia said. “It was a long-fought battle, but we, we prevailed, and I can’t thank you enough. We’re going to be right back at City Hall tomorrow to keep doing the people’s business.”

About the federal criminal charges he’s facing, Correia said, “Today’s not about that, today’s a celebration.”

Asked to respond to the 61 percent of voters who voted to recall him from office, Correia said he will focus on earning the trust of those voters over the months leading up to the next mayoral election in November, when he will seek a third term in office.

“Everybody’s got the right to vote, I would hope that in the next election in November that they vote for me, that’s all. I want every single person in Fall River to vote for me. That’s never the reality, but we’re going to keep trying to earn people’s votes, earn their trust.”

Coogan, who watched election results come in at Scotty's Pub, was disappointed in the outcome.

“I just want you to know how tough it is to lose something like this when you work a long time and you think what you’re trying to do is make the place you live a better place to live," Coogan said. “I think Fall River deserves better than what we ended up with tonight, but the voters decided to go a different way, so we’re going to respect them.”

Coogan said he's already considering running for mayor again, just a few months from now.

“I am telling you right now that I’m a tad upset and I’m looking at September and thinking of how we can make this better," he said. “I say we keep Fall River moving forward and, again, you will never know how much your efforts mean to me."

City Councilor Joseph Camara, who finished a distant third, thanked his family and supporters after he conceded in his first bid for mayor in his 23-year political career.

“Today the people spoke, and they made it very clear that didn’t want me to be the next mayor, and they are still trying to decide whether they want Coogan or Correia, and I can live with that. The good news is I’m still on the City Council,” said Camara. “I’m not going to stop to continue to fight for the city I care about and I’ll continue to do my best on the council and I’ll just live with the vote of the people.”

After delivering his concession at Santorini Hall on Pleasant Street, Camara made it clear he will be holding the mayor’s feet to the fire when it comes to the mayor’s upcoming budget.

“Look at the drastic cuts that he made by taking these drastic measures during the campaign. I think you’re going to see a gap in the budget and I don’t know how you’re going to fill it,” said Camara. “He’s did things in Fall River and there are going to have to consequences for it.”

During his speech, Camara indicated he would likely not run again for mayor, but later on said he would not rule it out.

Erica Scott-Pacheco, who finished last, wasn't deterred by the results and said it was “full steam ahead” for her and her team.

“We will keep doing what we’re doing because essentially there has been no change,” said Scott-Pacheco.

The outcome of the recall election will only increase the negative attention that Fall River has received, Scott-Pacheco said, adding that she hopes the increased frustration of the residents will result in more voters coming out in the fall elections.

Kyle Riley, who could not be reached Tuesday night, said before the election that he intended to run again in the fall if he didn't succeed in the recall election.

Here are the unofficial vote tallies:

Jasiel Correia II: 4,808 votes (35.4%)

Paul Coogan: 4,567 votes (33.6%)

Joe Camara: 1,971 votes (14.5%)

Kyle Riley: 1,460 votes (10.8%)

Erica Scott-Pacheco: 740 votes (5.5%)

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